Teaching aid

ABSTRACT

A teaching aid for use in combination with brass instruments composed of a rim, a tapered shank and one or more arms, each of which is securedly attached at one end to said rim and the other end thereof to the larger end of said tapered shank. In a preferred embodiment the tapered shank is provided with an opening extending longitudinally therethrough.

United States Patent 1- [111 3,721,151 Dimond [451March 20, 1973TEACHING All) 776,785 12/1904 Kruse ..84/399 Inventor: Harold L. Dimond10629 G m y 583,421 5/1897 Skrclmore ..84/398 Lane, Cincinnati, Ohio45241 [22] Filed: July 19, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 163,724

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 113,891, Feb. 9,

1971, abandoned.

[52] US. Cl ..84/398, 84/465 [51] Int. Cl. ..G10d 9/02 [58] Field ofSearch ..84/398, 399, 400, 453, 465

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,515,411 7/1950 La Velle..84/398 Primary ExaminerRichard B. Wilkinson. AssistantExaminer-Lawrence R. Franklin 7 ABSTRACT A teaching aid for use incombination with brass instruments composed of a rim, a tapered shankand one or more arms, each of which is securedly attached at one end tosaid rim and the other end thereof to the larger end of said taperedshank. In a preferred embodiment the tapered shank is provided with anopening extending longitudinally therethrough.

10 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures TEACHING AID This application is acontinuation-in-part application of my application Ser. No. 113,891, forTeaching Aid filed Feb. 9, 1971 now abandoned.

This invention relates to a teaching aid for use with brass instruments.Although brass instruments are generally constructed in whole or in partof brass, they need not be to retain their membership in the family.Certain features are recognized by those skilled in the art which typifythese instruments. One of these is that they are played by causingvibrations of lips inside a cup-shaped mouthpiece. Another is thatvibrations in these instruments are given their characteristic tonalqualities by the special combination of construction features peculiarto the same, some of which may include material of construction, length,diameter, taper, weight, shape, thickness of tubing, etc. In the brassinstruments the sound produced is amplified by the flareshaped bell atthe end thereof. Examples of various types of brass instruments includetrumpet, comet, baritone, emphonium, fleugel horn, bugle, bass trumpet,alto horn, French horn, tenor horn, mellophone, trombonium, trombone,tuba, sousaphone, etc.

It is of course understood that the goal of a musician is to producebeautiful sounds. The objective of a player of a brass instrument, then,involves a study to find the best way to do this, which means the properplacement and development of the embouchure, that is, the area of themouth which is involved in the production of sound. The muscle structureof the lips, mouth, jaw, chin and cheeks are all integral parts of thisarea. There are several important reasons for proper embouchuredevelopment. For example, as a musician improves his embouchure, he canimprove his intonation and tone quality, increase his range, speed histonguing, lengthen his endurance and increase his dexterity. The deviceof this invention is an extremely valuable aid in teaching, learning,and diagnosing the difficulties of playing brass instruments because itpermits development of a good embouchure and facilitates the choice ofthe most suitable instrument in the brass family.

Accordingly, the device described and defined herein is intended forinstructing and assisting students in proper embouchure placement anddevelopment.

In this connection, reference is made to FIG. 1, which is a view inperspective of the novel teaching aid of the present invention. FIG. 2is also a view in perspective partly in section, of a preferredembodiment of the novel teaching aid of the present invention. FIG. 3 isan elevational view, partly in section, of the preferred embodiment ofFIG. 2 mounted for use in a brass instrument, in this case, a trumpet.

Referring to FIG. 1, the teaching device 2 is composed ofa rim 4,preferably circular, a tapered shank 6, tapering away from said rim, andone or more arms 8, each of which is securedly attached at one end tosaid rim 4 and the other end thereof to the adjacent larger end of saidtapered shank 6. The teaching device can plastics, such as nylon,polyethylene, polystyrene, etc., or any combination thereof.

Referring to the preferred embodiment 12 of FIG. 2, the same is designedas in FIG. 1 except that the tapered shank 6 is provided with an opening10 extending longitudinally therethrough and in substantial alignmentwith the center point of the geometrical figure encompassed by rim 4. Itcan be seen from FIG. 2 that arms 8 lie outside an imaginary coneextending from the inside edge of rim 4 to the upper edge of opening 10in shank 6 and that arms 8 cover only a very small portion of thesurface area of the imaginary cone. When the teaching aid is mounted inthe mouthpiece of a suitable brass instrument, as will be seen herein inFIG. 3, the opening 10 is also in substantial alignment with the openingin the mouthpipe of the instrument.

In FIG. 3, the teaching device of the preferred embodiment of FIG. 2 isshown snugly mounted in the mouthpipe of a suitable brass instrument,namely, a trumpet, ready for use by the student. The student places theinstrument in normal playing position, with his lips centered on thedevice, and then attempts to play. In the event the teaching device ofFIG. 1 is used, however, he cannot play, because the construction of theteaching device does not permit transmission and resulting amplificationof vibrations through the instru' ment. Nevertheless, the student willproduce lip vibrations identical to those which occur in the cup of theordinary mouthpiece of the brass instrument. Thus, any improperplacement of the device, or incorrect formations of the lips are exposedand are immediately obvious to the instructor, and/or student. Inaddition, it enables one to ascertain whether the direction and flow ofthe air column is correct. Not only will the device be excellent forcorrective measures, but it will also enable the instructor todemonstrate the correct embouchure and correct direction of the air flowto a student. The advantage of this device over any other existingdevice is that it permits the instructor and/or student to observe thestudents embouchure under actual playing conditions. Proper developmentof the student's lips, chin, jaw and cheek muscles can easily beachieved since proper corrective measures can be easily and accuratelytaken.

When the preferred embodiment of FIG. 2 is employed, however, anadditional, and vital, effect is also obtained, despite the absence of anormal mouthpiece cup, through which all vibrations of the air columnare usually funnelled. When the vibrating column of air is centereddirectly through opening 10 into the mouthpipe of the instrument, theinstrument will respond, resonantly, to the lip vibrations, thusproducing a distinctly audible and characteristic sound. Although thesize of the opening 10 is not critical, it should approximate thedimensions in the average mouthpiece normally used in the instrument.Such precise directional control of the air column makes possibletransmission of lip vibrations with a minimum expenditure of energy andis essential for the production of the best possible intonation andpurest tone.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the invention, ashereinabove defined, can be made without departing from the scopethereof, and only such limitations should be imposed as are indicated inthe appended claims.

I claim:

l. A simulated mouthpiece for a brass musical instrument comprising acircular rim having an inner diameter and an axis, a shank spaced fromsaid rim and externally shaped to mate with said instrument, said shankhaving a longitudinal bore therethrough coaxial with said axis, said rimand said shank defining an imaginary cone extending from the innercircumference of said rim to the circumference of said bore, and meansconnecting said shank to said rim, said connecting means lying outsidesaid imaginary cone.

2. A simulated mouthpiece as in claim 1 wherein said connecting meanscomprises arm means fixed to said rim and said shank, said arm meanscovering only a small portion of the surface area of said imaginarycone, whereby vibrations directed through the rim toward the bore willbe received by the bore, but vibrations directed away from the bore willpass to the exterior of the shank.

3. A simulated mouthpiece as in claim 1 wherein said connecting means isconstructed to permit free dissipation of any vibrations coming throughsaid rim and directed outside said bore.

4. A simulated mouthpiece as in claim 1 wherein said connecting meanscomprises at least one arm fixed to said rim and said shank.

5. A simulated mouthpiece as in claim 4 wherein said arm comprises athin rod.

6. A teaching aid for brass musical instruments comprising aconventional brass musical instrument without a mouthpiece, and asimulated mouthpiece comprising a circular rim having an inner diameterand an axis, a shank spaced from said rim and externally shaped to matewith said instrument, said shank having a longitudinal bore therethroughcoaxial with said axis, said rim and said shank defining an imaginarycone extending from the inner circumference of said rim to thecircumference of said bore, and means connecting said shank to said rim,said connecting means lying outside said imaginary cone.

7. A teaching aid as in claim 6 wherein said connecting means comprisesarm means fixed to said rim and said shank, said arm means covering onlya small portion of the surface area of said imaginary cone, wherebyvibrations directed through the rim toward the bore will be received bythe bore, but vibrations directed away from the bore will pass to theexterior of the shank.

8. A teaching aid as in claim 6 wherein said connecting means isconstructed to permit free dissipation of any vibrations coming throughsaid rim and directed outside said bore.

9. A teaching aid as in claim 6 wherein said connecting means comprisesat least one arm fixed to said rim and said shank.

10. A teaching aid as in claim 9 wherein said arm is a thin rod.

1. A simulated mouthpiece for a brass musical instrument comprising acircular rim having an inner diameter and an axis, a shank spaced fromsaid rim and externally shaped to mate with said instrument, said shankhaving a longitudinal bore therethrough coaxial with said axis, said rimand said shank defining an imaginary cone extending from the innercircumference of said rim to the circumference of saId bore, and meansconnecting said shank to said rim, said connecting means lying outsidesaid imaginary cone.
 2. A simulated mouthpiece as in claim 1 whereinsaid connecting means comprises arm means fixed to said rim and saidshank, said arm means covering only a small portion of the surface areaof said imaginary cone, whereby vibrations directed through the rimtoward the bore will be received by the bore, but vibrations directedaway from the bore will pass to the exterior of the shank.
 3. Asimulated mouthpiece as in claim 1 wherein said connecting means isconstructed to permit free dissipation of any vibrations coming throughsaid rim and directed outside said bore.
 4. A simulated mouthpiece as inclaim 1 wherein said connecting means comprises at least one arm fixedto said rim and said shank.
 5. A simulated mouthpiece as in claim 4wherein said arm comprises a thin rod.
 6. A teaching aid for brassmusical instruments comprising a conventional brass musical instrumentwithout a mouthpiece, and a simulated mouthpiece comprising a circularrim having an inner diameter and an axis, a shank spaced from said rimand externally shaped to mate with said instrument, said shank having alongitudinal bore therethrough coaxial with said axis, said rim and saidshank defining an imaginary cone extending from the inner circumferenceof said rim to the circumference of said bore, and means connecting saidshank to said rim, said connecting means lying outside said imaginarycone.
 7. A teaching aid as in claim 6 wherein said connecting meanscomprises arm means fixed to said rim and said shank, said arm meanscovering only a small portion of the surface area of said imaginarycone, whereby vibrations directed through the rim toward the bore willbe received by the bore, but vibrations directed away from the bore willpass to the exterior of the shank.
 8. A teaching aid as in claim 6wherein said connecting means is constructed to permit free dissipationof any vibrations coming through said rim and directed outside saidbore.
 9. A teaching aid as in claim 6 wherein said connecting meanscomprises at least one arm fixed to said rim and said shank.
 10. Ateaching aid as in claim 9 wherein said arm is a thin rod.